Tender by Beth Hetland Review

Carolanne and Lee fall in love. They get married, she gets pregnant, leaves her job, plays homemaker - everything’s going perfectly! But who’s that strange shadowy figure living in the nearby apartment that haunts Carolanne…

Wow. I’m not sure what I was expecting with this one, having never read anything by Beth Hetland before, but I definitely didn’t expect what Tender turned out to be. It’s certainly not the relationship drama that it starts off as and I feel like the twists are too good to even hint at in a review so, if you’re intrigued by this one - and I do highly recommend this comic, which is easily, already, one of 2024’s best comics - go into it blind and let the story take you where it’ll take you - all I’ll say is, it goes to some really, really dark places in that final act, so be warned.

Otherwise, I’ll talk a bit more about the book below, which touches on SPOILER-y stuff, so if that doesn’t bother you, or you’ve already read it, here begins the review proper:

The cover already tells you this is an unusual book, not about domestic bliss, and that, along with those opening couple pages, meant that I could guess immediately where the story was headed. It’s a testament to Hetland’s storytelling though that predictability in no way impinges on the enjoyment of the book - seeing Carolanne’s descent is never less than completely engrossing to follow.

Hetland skilfully uses the comics medium to foreshadow Carolanne’s doomed lifepath, highlighting moments of reality breaking through to what is clearly someone living in happier times, in the past, with intrusive bright blues - look out for those panels where Carolanne feels unnerved by something and the appearance of the bright blue shading; they’re telling you that Carolanne’s mind is subconsciously reminding her of her horrible present life.

Hetland’s art style (which is excellent by the way) really sells the final act beautifully. Gone are the clear lines, replaced by shaky, ethereal lines and overlapping text boxes to reflect Carolanne’s complete break with reality.

The story starts off happy, showing us Carolanne and Lee’s courtship, etc. but it wouldn’t be much of a story if it was just about a happy marriage, would it? And sure enough Hetland suggests trouble is in the works with splash pages showing Carolanne’s vivid, disturbing nightmares.

I wonder if this is meant to be a modern witch’s story. There’s lot of clues dotted throughout the book. Carolanne’s weird behaviour, eating her own flesh, nails and hair; her black and white cat (a familiar?) and it's weird glowing eyes; the mention of tarot reading in her friend’s circle (coven?); her one friend who looks like a cartoon witch in comparison to her other friends who are drawn more realistically; the night she burns wedding invites in a stockpot (cauldron?) to make Lee marry her, like she’s casting a spell - which works.

But that’s one of many ways you could read the story. It could be the story of a tragic marriage; the story of untreated depression; the story of how social media/peer pressure forces us to pine for a perfect life that isn’t attainable for everyone and what happens to us when we fall short; an inspired, great horror story; or all of the above!

Tender is also one of the few books that lives up to its label of “thriller” - I read the book in one sitting, it was that compelling. An absolute powerhouse of a comic - bravo Beth Hetland, you’ve made one of the best comics, if not the best, of the year. Tender is a virtuoso comic - do yourself a favour and check it out for an astonishing read!